This invention relates to a multicomponent additive combination, to a method of using the same to either break or prevent the formation of emulsions, and to hydrocarbon compositions containing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a multicomponent additive combination, to a method of using the same to break oil-in-water and/or water-in-oil emulsions and to hydrocarbon compositions containing the same.
As is well known, the performance of various petroleum products and other hydrocarbons can be adversely affected by the presence of water therein. As is also well known, water can be dispersed in such products during processing. For example, the presence of water is often found in gasoline storage. Moreover, sea water is often present with gasoline or petroleum products when the same are transferred from tankers and/or barges to stationary, land storage facilities. Such contamination is, of course, not, per se, bad and, indeed, long range deleterious effects can often be avoided by allowing sufficient settling time and thereafter decanting or otherwise separating the hydrocarbon and water phases.
Due to the large volumes stored and transported, however, the provision of adequate settling time is not, generally, practical. Moreover, when a hydrocarbon-water mixture, such as gasoline and water is subjected to high shear agitation, such as can occur in refinery blending and/or high shear pumping, such as can be encountered in transferring from tanker or barge to land storage or from tank to tank while in storage, relatively stable oil-in-water and water-in-oil emulsions can be formed. Then, upon settling the two emulsions will separate and decanting will permit separation of the two emulsions, but the hydrocarbon phase will contain water and the water phase will contain oil. The hydrocarbon phase would, in turn, exhibit the detrimental properties often exhibited by water-containing hydrocarbons. The oil in the water phase, on the other hand, could be carried out along during hydrocarbon transfer operations. Moreover, dirt, normally floating at the interphase, could be entrained in the hydrocarbon phase as well. The adverse effects of dirt on the performance of the hydrocarbon phase, especially where the hydrocarbon phase is a material such as gasoline is, of course, well known and need not be discussed herein.
The problems associated with the formation of stable emulsions have become more common in recent years and particularly since the advent of the use of additives possessing surfactant properties. In this regard, it should be noted that such additives have been used, with increasing frequency in water immiscible, organic liquids, such as synthetic and mineral oils, solvents and fuels, as dispersants, oxidation and rust inhibitors, anti-icing agents, pour point depressants, detergents, etc. In particular, ashless, oil soluble polymeric dipsersants have largely displaced metal sulfonates, metal naphthenates and similar compounds for use as stabilizing additives in petroleum distillate fuels and related hydrocarbon oil products because of their increased ability to suspend insoluble degradation products formed in such oils. Sludge and sediment, which might otherwise tend to clog fuel lines, orifices, screens and filters through which the oils must pass, are held in suspension to a much greater extent by the polymeric additives than by the additive materials formerly employed. These increased dispersive properties, although highly desirable from the standpoint of oil stability, carburetor performance, and the like, have given rise to water tolerance problems much more serious than those heretofore encountered.
Polymeric surfactants employed as additives exhibit particularly pronounced tendencies to suspend any water with which the organic liquid mediums come into contact, and hence extremely persistant haze and stable emulsions are formed upon contact of oils containing the polymeric additives with water. Moreover, since an aqueous phase exist in most tanks and other vessels containing such oils, and other liquid hydrocarbons such as solvents and petroleum fuels, haze formation and emulsification are almost impossible to avoid. As a consequence, the marketability of these organic liquids and particularly the solvents and distillate fuels, lubricating oils, transformer oils, turbine oils, jet fuels, gasoline, heating oil and other petroleum products is often serious affected.
Heretofore, several methods have been proposed for breaking oil-in-water and water-in-oil emulsions. For the most part, these prior art processes involve the use of demulsifiers and the use of various alkoxylated alkylphenol-formaldehyde resins and various quaternary ammonium halides have been contemplated for this purpose. The prior art processes heretofore developed do not, however, function quickly and water is often contained in various hydrocarbons when the same reached the ultimate consumer. Moreover, significant quantities of hydrocarbon are lost when the water phase is discarded. Also, when the amount of water present during blending or other processing is relatively large, dirt will be entrained in the hydrocarbon reaching the consumer. This is, of course, due primarily to the short storage time allowed after blending and, this in turn is due primarily to the high current demand for such hydrocarbons. The need, then, for a demulsifying system which will break emulsions quickly and permit clean separation of the hydrocarbon in water phases is believed to be readily apparent.